Button feeding attachment for sewing machines



Jan. 19, 1960 N. wu |s ETAL 2,921,544

BUTTON FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES Filed Sept. 22. 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet l S m w N m m E o v vu n mLR Z \.\l-/. f NA r m M M an we mm ww QM Y (Q B Q Q Q\ N% 99 Jan. 19, 1960 G. N. WILLIS ETAL BUTTUN FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES Filed Sept. 22. 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG.2

INVENTORS GPANT V. WILL/3 FRANK A. 0MP); JP.

5 Sheets-Sheet 3 G. N. WILLIS ETAL BUTTON FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES Jan. 19, 1960 Filed Sept. 22. 1955 INVENTORS GRANT N W/L L/S FPA /\/K A. CL A m; JR

\, ATTORNEYS FIG.3

Jan. 19, 1960 G. N. WILLIS ETAL 2,921,544

BUTTON FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR sswmc. MACHINES Filed Sept. 22. 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 FIG.4

INVENTORS GPA/V7 /v. WILL/6 FRANK A. cum); JR.

FIG.5

ATTORNEYS Jan. 19, 1960 G. N. WILLIS ETAL 2,921,544

BUTTON FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES Filed Sept. 22. 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 FIG. 6

FIG. 7

INVENTORS GRANT /v. WILL/5 FRANK A. cLAm; an.

W WM

United States PatentOi BUTTON FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES Grant N. Willis and Frank A. Clary, Jr., Bristol, Conn., assignors, by mesne assignments, to A. J. Mitchell Co., Boston, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Application September 22, 1955, Serial No. 535,802 16 Claims. (Cl. 112-113) I This invention relates to attachments for button sewing machines, and more particularly to an improved attachment for automatically feeding buttons to a button sewing machine.

One object of the invention is to provide an attachment of universal applicability to commercial button sewing machines now in use and which is capable of feeding buttons into the button holding mechanism of a sewing machine at a rapid rate, in a jam-proof manner, and with uniform angular orientation of the buttons.

Another object is to provide an attachment of the type referred to which is arranged to control the operation of the sewing machine as well as the feeding of buttons thereto so as to provide an integrated and coordinated mechanism .which is fully automatic in operation and may be supplied with buttons from any convenient bulk source, such as a hopper or the like. 7

Another object is to provide a button feeding attachment which is so constructed and arranged as to afford the operator a completely unobstructed view of the work area surrounding the needle andbutton holding mechanism of the sewing machine.

Another object is to provide an attachment of the type referred to which minimizes the length of .time required to place and sew on a single button, and thereby increases the overall rate of output of a sewing machine to which it is applied.

Another object is to provide an attachment of the type referred to which has a simplified control mechanism, and which is capable of selectively controlling the operation of a sewing machine to provide for either a single cycle of operation at a time, such as. to sew on a single button, or continuous operation, such as to sew on a series of buttons.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out more in detail hereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combination of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereafter set forth and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a front elevation viewof an attachment constructed in accordance with the invention;

Figure 2 is a plan view of the attachment with certain parts removed;

Figure 3 is a plan view of a portion of the attachment with the cover thereof removed;

Figure 4 is a sectional view of the structure of Figure 3 taken on the line 44 thereof;

Figure 5 is a sectional view of the structure of Figure 3 taken on the line 55 thereof;

Figure 6 is a back end view of the attachment, with the back wall removed; I

Figure 7 is a side view of the cam shaft and associated cams and clutch, the clutch being shown in section; and I a 2,921,544 Patented Jan. 19, 1960- Figure 8 is a fragmentary perspective view of the clutch release lever.

Referring to the drawings, a button feeding attachment constructed in accordance with the present invention is shown in Figures 1 and 2 in connection with a button sewingmachine of which the base is shown in outline at 2. The sewing machine is equipped with the usual horizontally opposed button holding or clamping jaws 4 adapted to receive one button at a time and hold it on a garment or the like in proper position for sewing. The button clamping jaws are spring biased to clamping position but can be spread apart to receive or release a button. The jaws are arranged to move vertically between an intermediate position at which they are adapted to receive a button, a depressed position in which the button therein is held in contact with the garment for sewing, and an elevated position which tensions and breaks the thread beneath the button after it has been sewed onto the garment. The sewing machine also includes a jaw opening mechanism having a pivotal controlarm 6 whose actuation spreads the jaws to permit release of a button therefrom.

Turning now to the details of the attachment, the attachment includes a base 10 mounted on adjustable legs 12 adapted to rest on a supporting table 14 or the like on the righthand side of the sewing machine and slightly to the rear of the clamping jaws 4, as best shown in Figures 1 and 2. Mounted on the base at its righthand side is a control unit 16 by which the operations of the various elements of the attachment are coordinated in timed relation. Surmounting the control unit is a motor 18 which drives the attachment.

Mounted on the base to the left of the control unit is an inclined chute 20 into the upper end of which buttons are adapted to be fed in uniformly arranged rightside-up relation from any suitable bulk supply (not shown). The chute 20. is dimensioned to permit the buttons to slide down it freely, and the side walls of the chute are adjustable to accommodate difierent sizes of buttons. Pivotally mounted above the chute is an escapement or hold-back detent 22 having an upper finger 24 and a lower finger 26 arranged to be alternately disposed in the path of buttons sliding down the chute so as to escape buttons to the lower end of the chute one at a time. At its lower end, the chute curves smoothly into a button receiving nest including a pair of fixed horizontal button loading jaws 28 beneath which is a horizontal shutter 30 slidably mounted in a bracket 32 attached to the base. The shutter is biased by a spring 34 to a lefthand position, as shown in Figure 1, in which it provides a floor on which a button in the jaws 28 may rest, and a crank 36 is arranged to move the shutter to a righthand position in which it is, withdrawn from beneath a button in the jaws.

Above the loading jaws is a vertical spindle 40 mounted for vertical reciprocation and oscillation in a bracket 42. Vertical movement of the spindle is controlled by a spindle actuating arm 44 connected to a collar 46 on the spindle by a compliance spring 48, while oscillation of the spindle is effected by a chain drive to a sprocket 50 on the spindle, the chain 52 being driven one way by a crank 54 and'the other way by a spring 56 anchored to a bracket on the base. A screw 58 carried by arm 44 operates the shutter crank when the spindle is depressed. On the lower end of the spindle is a spinner 60 consisting of a pad of resilient material adapted to frictionally engage and rotate a button in contact therewith.

Beneath the shutter is a horizontally disposed transfer arm 62 which serves as the means for conveying a but-1 ton from the nest to the clamping jaws 4 of the sewing machine. The transfer arm has a headpiece provided with upstanding button engaging prongs 64 corresponding in nnmberandspacing to the holes in the buttons to be handled. The transfer arm is connected to thebaseby a modified pantographic type of linkage including a short leg66 and a long leg 68 which are both pivotally mounted at one end on the-baseand pivotally connected" at the other end to the arm 62, andis arranged to be' driven through a link 70 f which one end is connectedto a crank extension'on long leg 68 and the other endis confined in a slot 72 in the base for movement parallel to the longitudinal axis of the sewing machine. Pivoting movement imparted to the leg 68 by link 70 causes the transfer arm 62 to move in a path determined by the arcuate-travel of the ends of legs 66, 68. The transfer arm is biased to button delivering position bya spring 73 biasing link 70 rearwardly, and the arrangement and dimensions of the link 70, transfer arm 62 and legs 66, 68- aresuch-that reciprocation of'the rearward endof-the link in'the slot 72 producesan excursion of the prongs 64' in a horizontal plane along a path shown schematically at 74, Figure 2. The path 74 extends betweenthe button receiving position of the prongs 64 beneath the jaws 28, an intermediate station 75 directly in front of theclamping jaw' intermediate vertical position, and abutton deliveringposition between the clamping jaws 4, with the movement from station 75- to button delivering position being in a straight line directly rearwardly.

'The control unit 16 includes a rotatable cam shaft 80 onwhich is mounted a set of cams by which the various elements of the apparatus above described, together with the sewing, machine itself, are operated in coordination. As best shown in Figure 3, the cam shaft 80 is driven from'the motor 18through a pulley 82, a shaft 84 having a manual jogging knob 86, a pinion 88, a gear 90 freely rotatable'on the cam shaft, and a single revolution clutch 92 by which-the gear 90 is drivingly engaged with the cam shaft. The single revolution clutch is of conventional design and includes a hub 94 which is permanently keyed to the cam shaft andcarries a drive pin 96, best shown in Figures 5, 6 and 7, slidable parallel to the shaft 80 and biased in any convenient manner toward engagement with one of a series of bores 91 in the gear 90.

mounted clutch release lever 100. The release lever is biased upwardly to a clutch disengaging position by a spring 102, and may be pivoted downward to a position such as to engage the clutch, as shown in Figure 5, by a pull rod 104 attached to a pedal or other suitable manual control (not shown). When the lever 100 is in its upper position, a release cam 106 on. the lever engages an enlarged head on the pin 96. during rotation of the hub 94 and earns the pin out of driving engagement with the gear 90. A stop 108 on the clutch release lever is arranged to engage the head of the pinonce the pin is disengaged from the driving gear 90 and prevents rotation of hub 94. When the lefthand end of the release lever 100 is pulled down to theposition shown in Figure the release cam 106 is disengaged from drive pin 96 and the drive pin is moved by its spring into one of the bores in the continuously rotating gear 90, thereby engaging the clutch and causing the cam shaft 80 to begin to rotate in a counterclockwise direction, as shown in Figure 5. After the cam shaft has rotated a full revolution, if the release lever 100 has been returned to its upper or clutch disengaging position, the head of pin 96 reengages the release cam 106 and this disconnects pin 96 from gear 90, stopping the cam shaft with the pin against the stop 108.

Means is also provided to interrupt each revolution of the cam shaft at the end of the first90 phase of its rotation. To this end there is provided a clutch stop lever 110 having a release cam 112 and a stop 114 similar in all respects to the release earn 106 and stop 108 of the clutch release lever 100 but disposed 90 counterclockwise therefrom. The stop lever 110 ismovable be- Operation of the clutch is controlled by a pivotally M tween a clutch disengaging position in which it is held by a latch 116, as shown in Figure 5, and a clutch engaging position to which it is biased by a spring 118. The latch 116 is releasable by a trip lever 120 biased upwardly by a spring 122 and having an adjustable screw 124 engageable with an arm 126 on the latch. With this arrangement, when the single revolution clutch is engaged by depressing the clutch release lever 100, the cam shaft rotates and is stopped by engagement of the pin with the release cam 112 and stop 114 of the clutch stop lever and, when the latch 116 is tripped, the clutch is reengaged and the cam shaft rotates through the balance of its full revolution.

Describing now the cams mounted on the cam shaft 80 and with particular reference to Figures 3, 4 and 5, at the front end of the cam shaft is a sewing machine clamp lift cam 130 connected through a roller 132 and pivotal arm 134 to a pull rod 136 which extends below the base of the attachment. The rod '136 is adapted to be connected by a linkage (not shown) to the clamping jawlift mechanism on the sewing machine so that when pull rod 136 is raised and lowered the clamping jaws 4 of the sewing machine are likewise raised and lowered. The clamp lift cam 130 also controls vertical movement of the spindle 40 through a roller 138 which engages the spindle actuating arm 44.

Behind the clamp lift cam is a cylindrical transfer arm cam 140 which engages the rearward end of the link 70 and serves to drive the transfer arm to button receiving position. A pulley 142 integral with the transfer arm cam is engaged by a stationary belt 144 to provide a friction drag for the cam shaft eliminating rebound.

On the' back of the transfer cam is a protuberance 146 arranged to engage a crank 148 connected to a pivotally mounted sewing machine clamp release arm 150, as shownin Figure 2, having at its free end a tip piece or rod 152 dimensioned to'engage and actuate the clamping jaw release control arm 6 of the sewing machine when the clamp release arm is pivoted in a clockwise direction, asshown in Figure 2.

I Thedrive gear 90 carries a spindle oscillating cam 154 connected through a bell crank 156 and pull rod 158 to thecrank which moves the spindle chain 52. The spindle oscillating cam 154 has two high points so as to drive, the spindle through two complete cycles of oscillation during each revolution of the cam shaft.

Tothe rear of the driving gear the cam shaft carries a sewing machine clutch tripping cam 160 which is arranged to cooperate with a roller 162 on clutch tripping lever 120 to lift a pull rod 164. The rod 164 extends below the base of the attachment and is adapted to be connected in any convenient manner to the clutch actuating means of the sewing'machine for movement therewith. A convenient way to do this is to connect the rod 164 to the conventional treadle rod (not shown) of the sewing machine which is normally used to initiate the operation of the sewing machine. In conventional machines, the treadle rod initiates a button-sewing operation by tripping a latch or otherwise to cause the sewing machine clutch to engage, which is subsequently cammed to clutch disengaged position by cam means at the completion of the button-sewing operation. Since this mechanism does not constitute any part of the present invention, a detailed description thereof is deemed unnecessary. Accordingly, when rod 164 is pulled upwardly, the sewing machine drive clutch will be engaged and a sewing operation initiated, and, when the sewing operation is completed and the sewing machine clutch automatically disengages itself, rod 164 will be pulled down sufiiciently for screw 124 to trip latch 116.

On the rearward side of the clutch tripping cam is a protuberance 166 arranged to engage an arm 168 on the clutch stop lever 110 and reset the clutch stop lever to its latched position, as shown in Figure 5, as cam shaft 80 rotates.

To connect the attachment to the sewing machine, the attachment is positioned horizontally so that, when the transfer arm 62 is in its button delivering position, the prongs are disposed between the sewing machine clamping jaws 4 and the height of the base is adjusted by means of the legs so that a button carried by the prongs will be at the same height as the intermediate or button receiving vertical position of the clamping jaws. The tip-piece 152 is then adjusted for engagement with the clamping jaw release arm 6 of the sewing machine, the rod 164 is linked to the sewing machine drive clutch, rod 136 is linked to the sewing machine clamping jaw lift mechanism, and the apparatus is then ready for operation.

The operation of the attachment will now be described. At the beginning of the cycle of operation, the cam shaft 80 is in the position shown in Figure 4, a button is in the clamping jaws 4 of the sewing machine and the clamping jaws are in their intermediate vertical position spaced above the sewing machine base, so that a garment to which the buttons are to be sewn may be freely positioned beneath jaws 4. The spindle 40 is in its upper position, as shown in Figure. 1, the transfer arm 62 is in its button receiving position with the prongs 64 beneath the shutter 30, as shown in Figure 2, and a button is in the jaws 28. Operation of the apparatus is commenced by depressing the control pedal and pulling rod 104 downward, thereby moving the clutch release lever 100 to the position shown in Figure 5. This engages the single revolution clutch with the continuously rotating drive gear and causes the cam shaft to rotate counterclockwise 90 as shown in Figure 5. During this 90 of rotation, the sewing machine clamp lift cam 130 lowers rod 136 and permits the sewing machine clamping jaws 4 to drop down to sewing position on the garment. Also during this 90 rotation, protuberance 166 pivots stop lever 110 into clutch disengaging position where it is held by latch 116, as shown in Figure 5, and the clutch tripping cam 160 likewise momentarily pivots clutch trip lever counterclockwise, as shown in Figure 5, and pulls rod 164 upwardly, which movement engages the drive clutch of the sewing machine. The sewing machine then sews the button in the clamping jaws onto the garment. During the 90 rotation of the cam shaft the cam 130 also depresses the spindle 40, so that simultaneously with the sewing operation the spindle descends into engagement with the button in the loading jaws 28, this downward movement of the spindle pivoting the detent 22 and allowing another button to slide into it from the top of the chute. As the spinner 60 engages the button the screw 58 pivots the shutter control arm 36 and Withdraws the shutter 30 from beneath the button, and the button is pushed downwardly by the spinner 60 into contact with the prongs 64 of the transfer arm. Simultaneously, the cam 154 oscillates the spindle 40, the spinner 60 oscillates the button until all of its holes register with the prongs 64, and s the downward pressure of compliance spring 48 on the spinner 60 thrusts the button onto the prongs. It is a particular advantage of this oscillating spinner action that its rotation of the botton first one way and then the other insures that all of the button holes will be registered with the prongs 64 while the spinner is exerting its downward pressure. This eliminates loading failures likely to occur if the spindle is rotated in one direction only, wherein engagement of one hole with a prong may shift the button slightly so as to make subsequent registry of the other holes impossible, and thereby insures dependable loading of the transfer arm even at high button handling rates.

After rotation 90, the cam shaft is halted by engagement of the drive pin with the clutch stop lever 110 and remains stationary during the sewing operation. When the sewing operation is completed, the sewing machine clutch automatically disengages and pulls rod 164 downward, causing the pin 124 to trip latch 116 and enable the clutch stop lever 110 to pivot counterclockwise, as shown inFigure 5. This reengages the clutch with drive gear and causes cam shaft 80 to begin to rotate again ina counterclockwise direction. The cam shaft then rotates the remaining 270 phase of its complete revolution. During this second phase of the cam shaft rotation the sewing machine clamp lift cam pulls rod 136 upwardly elevating the sewing machine clamping jaws together with the button therein which has now become sewn to the garment, and automatically breaking the thread beneath the garment. Protuberance 146 then engages crank 148 and pivots the clamp release arm clockwise, as shown in Figure 2, causing tip piece 152 to engage the jaw release control 6 and spread the clamping jaws, and the tension in the garment produced by the elevation of the clamping jaws automatically pulls the sewn button out of the clamping jaws without requiring the. operator tomove the garment away from the margin gauge of the sewing machine.

Meanwhile, the rotation of the transfer arm cam permits link 70 to be pulled rearwardly by the spring and moves the transfer arm 62 forwardly and to the left, carrying the button previously loaded onto the prongs 64 along the path 74 beneath the elevated clamping jaws to the station 75. The spring drive of the transfer arm permits it to yield freely in the event of an obstruction, thereby eliminating any danger of injury to the operator or damage to parts. The further rotation of the clamp lift cam 130 then drops the clamping jaws 4 to their intermediate or button receiving position and, as previously explained, the last portion of the button delivering movement of the transfer arm moves the button directly into the clamping jaws with a simple straight line rearward movement which minimizes the possibility of jamming or improper loading. The prongs 64 hold the button in proper angular orientation and, as the transfer arm remains stationary momentarily, continued rotation of the sewing machine clamp lift cam 130 elevates the clamping jaws and lifts the button off of the prongs. The

transfer arm then completes its excursion along path 74 to its original position, as shown in Figure 2.

Meanwhile, continued rotation of the sewing machine clamp lift cam 130 returns the spindle 40 to its elevated position, thereby returning the shutter 30 to its lefthand position and pivoting the hold back detent 22 clockwise, as shown in Figure 1, so as to allow the button held therein to slide down into the loading jaws 28. The sewing machine clamp lift cam then returns the clamping jaws to their intermediate position affording the operator an opportunity to position the garment for sewing of the next button, and the apparatus is thereby conditioned for the next cycle of operation.

If rod 104 has been released meanwhile and release lever has returned to its upper position, the'single revolution clutch will be disengaged and cam shaft 80 will stop until rod 104 is again pulled down. Alternatively, however, the next cycle of operation may be arranged to follow immediately upon the first without pause by simply holding rod 104 down, in which case the clutch release lever 100 will remain depressed and the cam shaft will rotate immediately into the first phase of its next revolution. Under these circumstances, the cam shaft 80 will continue to rotate through successive cycles, causing the sewing machine to sew on a succession of buttons so long as lever 100 is held down, and automatically stopping momentarily at the 90 point in each cycle while the sewing machine performs its sewing operation.

An attachment constructed in accordance with the inventionhas many advantages. Since all of the operations of the sewing machine are controlled by the attachment, it will be appreciated that the attachment affords the operator complete control of both the sewing operation and the button loading operation, and thus the operator has nothing to do except index the garment after each button is sewed on so the next button will be properly placed. Also, since complete control of the attachment isafiorded by meansofonly a single. foot pedal or other. manual controlattached to. rod 104, the apparatuseliminates, any problem, of coordinating. multiple pedals or other controls, and, thereby enables the operator to coneentrate her complete, attention on accurate positioning of the garment. The attachment is capable of feeding buttons in a continuous and dependably jam-proof manner at very high rates, and, since the transfer arm is loaded simultaneously with the sewing operation, thereby minimizing the length of the overall cycle, it may be seen that a. sewing machine equipped with the attachment is, capable of extremely high rates of output. Moreover, the relative position of the attachment rearwardly and to one side of the clamping jaws affordsthe operator excellent unobstructed visibility of the clamping jaws and surrounding work area at all times. Finally, since the only connections between the attachment and the sewing machine are those between rod 136 and the clamping jaw lift mechanism and rod 164 and the sewing machine clutch mechanism, it will be appreciated that the attachment may be readily and easily applied to any commercial sewing machine.

As many changes could be made in the above cons'truction and many apparently widely dilferent embodiments of this invention could be made without'departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in, the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the language used in the following claims is intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

We claim:

1. A button feeding and control attachment for a button sewing machine of the type having button clamping jaws, a drive clutch, and a clamping jaw release, said attachment comprising a button receiver, means including an escapement for depositing buttons in the receiver one at a time, a button carrier movable from a position beneath the receiver to the sewing machine clamping jaws, loading means for moving a button from the receiver onto the carrier, a'control unit having first actuating means for controlling the operation of the sewing machine clamping jaws, drive clutch and release, and second actuating means in the control unit operatively associated with the button depositing means, button loading means, and carrier to coordinate the operation thereof with the elements controlled by said first actuating means, and automatic means for interrupting movement of the control unit until completion of a button-sewing operation.

2. A button feeding and control attachment for a button sewing machine of the type having button clamping jaws, a drive clutch, and a clamping jaw release; said attachment comprising a button receiver; means including an escapement for depositing buttons in the receiver; a button carrier movable from a position beneath the receiver to the sewing machine clamping jaws; loading means for moving a button from the receiver onto the button carrier and rotating the button to a predetermined rotated position; a control unit having a rotatable cam shaft; a first group of cams on the cam shaft arranged to control the operation of the sewing machine clamping jaws, drive clutch, and release; and a second group of cams on the cam shaft arranged to control the operation of said button depositing means, button loading means and button carrier in coordination with the operations controlled by the first group of cams, and means including a drive motor and a clutch for selectively rotating said cam shaft through either a single cycle or a series of cycles. I i

I 3. A button feeding and control attachment for a buten sew ng. machine ofthe type ha ng ton clampi jaws, adrive clutch, and clamping jaw release means; said attachment comprising a button receiver; means for depositing button-sin the receiver; a button transfer arm for conveying buttons. from the receiver to the sewing machine clamping jaws; said arm having upstanding button carrying prongs movable between a button receiving positionbcneath the receiver and a button delivering position between the sewing machine clamping jaws; means including a vertically reciprocable and oscillatable spindle above the receiver for moving a button from the receiver onto said prongs; means for moving the spindle toward the receiver to an operating position for engagement with a button in the receiver, means for oscillating the spindle while the spindle is in said operating position; a control unit having a rotatable cam shaft; first cam means on the cam shaft for controlling the operation of the sewing machine clamping jaws, drive clutch, and release means; and second cam means on the cam shaft for controlling the operation of said button depositing means, transfer arm and spindle in co-ordination with the operations controlled by said first cam means.

4. A button feeding and control attachment for a button sewing machine of the type having clamping jaws, a drive clutch, and a clamping jaw release; a button receiving nest; means for depositing buttons in the nest; a button transfer arm for conveying buttons from the nest to the sewing machine clamping jaws; said arm having up standing button impaling prongs movable between a but ton receiving position beneath the nest and a button delivering position between the sewing machine clamping jaws; means including a vertically reciprocable and oscillatable spindle above the nest for moving a button from the nest onto said prongs; means for moving the spindle toward the nest to an operating position for engagement with a button in the nest, means for oscillating the spindle while the spindle is in said operating position; a control unit having a rotatable cam shaft; first cam means on the cam shaft for controlling the operation of the sewing machine clamping jaws, drive clutch, and release; second cam means on the cam shaft for controlling the operation of said button depositing means, transfer arm and spindle in co-ordination with the operations controlled by said first cam means; driving means for rotating the cam shaft; a clutch connecting said driving means and cam shaft, and manual means for selectively engaging said clutch to rotate said cam shaft through either a single cycle or a series of cycles.

5. In a button feeding attachment for a button sewing machine, a button receiver having button positioning side walls between which a button is adapted to be deposited, an axially reciprocable and rotatable spindle mounted above the receiver in registry therewith and having a friction tip on its end adjacent the receiver, button transfer means movable to and from a button receiving position beneath the receiver and having outstanding prongs adapted to penetrate the holes in a button, means for axially moving the spindle toward the receiver to a button actuating position for engaging said tip with a button in the receiver and for pressing the button against said prongs, and means for oscillating said spindle while said spindle is in button actuating position, said friction tip being adapted to turn a button when frictionally engaged therewith but being rotatable relative to a button impaled on said prongs.

6. In a button feeding attachment for a button sewing machine, a button receiver having upstanding side walls between which a button is adapted to be deposited in fiat right-side-up relation and a fioor movable to and from a supporting position beneath the receiver for engagement underneath a button received between the side walls, button transfer means having upstanding prongs adapted to engage the holes in a button and movable to and from a button receiving position beneath the receiver floor, a

vertically reciprocable and rotatable spindle above the receiver having a friction tip on its lower end, means for moving the spindle downwardly toward the receiver for pressing engagement with a button in the receiver, means for simultaneously withdrawing the floor from beneath the receiver whereby the spindle is adapted to displace a button onto the prongs, and means for oscillating the spindle while it remains in a downward position to oscillate a button engaged thereby to align its holes with the prongs.

7. In a button feeding attachment for a button sewing machine, a button receiving nest having upright walls between which a button is adapted to be deposited in flat right-side-up relation, a floor in the nest movable to and from a position beneath the nest for supporting engagement underneath a button confined by the walls, means including a chute for depositing buttons in the nest one at a time, a button transfer arm for conveying a button from the nest to the sewing machine, said arm having upstanding button carrying prongs fixed thereon in predetermined position to engage the holes in a button and movable to and from a button receiving position beneath the nest floor, a vertically reciprocable and oscillatable spindle above the nest having a resilient friction tip on its lower end adapted to frictionally engage a button in the nest, means for depressing the spindle downwardly toward the nest for pressing engagement with a button in the nest, means actuated by depression of the spindle for moving the floor out from beneath the nest, whereby the spindle is adapted to displace a button from the nest said prongs, and means for oscillating the spindle in its depressed position to cause rotation of a button engaged thereby and register the holes in the button with the prongs.

8. In a button feeding attachment for a button sewing machine of the type having button clamping jaws, a button receiving nest having upright walls between which a button is adapted to be received in flat right-side-up relation, a floor in the nest slidable to and from a position underneath the nest for supporting a button confined by the walls, means for depositing buttons in the nest one at a time, a button transfer arm for convey,- ing buttons from the nest to the sewing machine clamping jaws, said arm having upstanding button carrying prongs movable between a button receiving position beneath the nest and a button delivering position between the sewing machine clamping jaws, a vertically reciprocable and oscillatable spindle above the nest having'a resilient tip on its lower end adapted to frictionally engage the upper surface of a button in the nest, means including a pivotable arm and a compliance spring connecting the arm and spindle for depressing the spindle toward the nest for resilient engagement with a button in the nest, means actuated by depression of the spindle for sliding the floor out from beneath the nest, whereby the spindle is adapted to displace a button from the nest down onto the prongs, and means for oscillating the spindle in its depressed position whereby a button engaged thereby will be rotated first one way and then the other way to register its holes with the prongs.

9. In a button feeding attachment for a button sewing machine of the type having horizontally opposed button clamping jaws arranged to open and close in a horizontal and lateral direction and movable vertically between a garment engaging position, a position elevated therefrom, and an intermediate button receiving position, a button receiver means for depositing buttons in the re ceiver, a transfer arm for conveying a button from the receiver to the clamping jaws and having button carrying prongs movable between a button receiving position adjacent the receiver and a button delivering position between said clamping'jaws at the intermediate vertical position thereof, means for loading a button in the receiver onto the prongs, means supporting the transfer arm for movement from button receiving to button de- 10 a j t livering position along a path such that the latter portion of the path of said prongs from the button receiving position to button delivering position is a straight horizontal line extending longitudinally into said clamping jaws at the intermediate vertical position thereof, said means supporting the transfer arm comprising a pair of spaced apart pivotally connected links, and means for pivoting said links.

' 10. In a button feeding attachment for a button sewing machine of the type having button clamping jaws arranged to open and close laterally and movable vertically between a garment engaging position, a position elevated therefrom, and an intermediate button receiving position, a button nest, means for depositing buttons in the nest one at a time, a transfer arm having upstanding button receiving prongs for conveying a button from the nest to the clamping jaws, loading means including a vertically reciprocable and oscillatable spindle for displacing a button from the nest onto the prongs, a cam for driving the transfer arm, and a linkage comprising a pair of pivoted arms of unequal length supporting the transfer arm and connecting the transfer arm and driving means arranged to restrict the movement of said transfer arm between button receiving position and button delivering position such that the path of said prongs termihates in a straight horizontal portion extending longitudinally into said clamping jaws at the intermediate vertical position thereof.

11. A button feeding and control attachment for a button sewing machine of the type having a drive clutch, button clamping jaws movable vertically between a garment engaging position, a position elevated therefrom, and an intermediate button receiving position, and a clamping jaw release; said attachment comprising a button receiver; supply means for depositing buttons in the receiver one at a time; a transfer arm movable between a button receiving position adjacent the receiver and a button delivering position between the sewing machine clamping jaws; loading means for displacing a button from the receiver onto the transfer arm in the button re ceiving position thereof; a first linkage adapted to control the engagement of the sewing machine drive clutch; a second linkage adapted to control the vertical position of the sewing machine clamping jaws; a third linkage for actuating the clamping jaw release; and actuating means including a plurality of power driven cams for operating the first, second and third linkages, supply means, loading means, and transfer arm in timed relation, whereby the clamping jaws are depressed to garment engaging position and the sewing machine drive clutch is engaged to begin a sewing operation, the clamping jaws are released upon completion of the sewing operation and moved to button receiving position, the transfer arm is loaded during the sewing operation and moved to button delivering position upon completion of the sewing operation, and the receiver is refilled with a button after the transfer arm is loaded; and manually actuated means for initiating operation of the actuating means.

12. In a button feeding attachment for a button sewing machine of the type having a drive clutch, button clamping jaws movable vertically between a garment engaging position, a position elevated therefrom, and an intermediate button receiving position, and clamping jaw release means; a button receiver; supply means ineluding a chute for depositing buttons in the receiver one at a time; a transfer arm having upstanding button receiving prongs movable between a button receiving position beneath the receiver and a button delivering position between the sewing machine clamping jaws; loading means including a vertically reciprocable and oscillatable spindle for displacing a button from the receiver onto the transfer arm in the button receiving position thereof; a first linkage adapted to control the engagement of the sewing machine drive clutch; a second linkage adapted to control the vertical position of the sewing machine clamping jaws; a third linkage for actuating the clamping jaw release means; actuating means including a rotatable cam shaft; respective cams on the cam shaft for operating the first, second and third linkages, supply means, loading means, and transfer arm in timed relation, whereby during a cycle of rotation of the cam shaft the clamping jaws are depressed to garment engaging position and the sewing machine drive clutch is engaged to begin a sewing operation, the clamping jaws are released upon completion of the sewing operation and moved to button receiving position, the transfer arm is loaded during the sewing operation and moved to button delivering position upon completion of the sewing operation, and the receiver is refilled with a button after the transfer arm is loaded; cam shaft rotating means including a drive motor and a clutch for connecting the motor to the cam shaft, and manual means for selectively engaging the clutch to provide either a single cycle of rotation of the cam shaft or continuous rotation thereof.

13. In a button feeding attachment for a button sewing machine of the type having a drive clutch, button clamping jaws movable vertically between a garment engaging position, a position elevated therefrom, and an intermediate button receiving position, and clamping jaw release means; a button nest; supply means for depositing buttons in the nest one at a time; a transfer arrn movable between a button receiving position beneath the nest and a button delivering position between the sewing machine clamping jaws; loading means for displacing a.

button from the nest onto the transfer arm in the but- I ton receiving position thereof; a rotatable cam shaft; a first cam on said cam shaft adapted to cause engagement of the sewing machine drive clutch; a second cam adapted to control the vertical position of the sewing machine clamping jaws; a third cam for actuating the clamping jaw release means; a fourth cam for controlling said supply means and loading means; a fifth cam for controlling said transfer arm; and manual means for controlling rotation of said cam shaft, whereby in timed relation the clamping jaws are depressed to garment engaging position and the sewing machine drive clutch is engaged to begin a sewing operation, the clamping jaws are released upon completion of the sewing operation and moved to button receiving position, the transfer arm is loaded during the sewing operation and moved to button delivering position upon completion of the sewing operation, and the nest is refilled with a button after the transfer arm is loaded.

14. In a button feeding attachment for a button sewing machine of the type having a drive clutch, button clamping jaws movable vertically between a garment engaging position, a position elevated therefrom, and an intermediate button receiving position, and clamping jaw release means; a transfer arm movable between a button receiving position and a button delivering position between the sewing machine clamping jaws; loading means for depositing a button on the transfer arm in the button re ceiving position thereof; a rotatable cam shaft having a cycle of rotation consisting of two successive phases; a manual control for initiating the first phase of cam shaft rotation and means responsive to cam shaft rotation for interrupting said rotation at the end of said first phase; a first cam on said cam shaft adapted to cause engagement of the sewing machine drive clutch and initiate a sewing operation during said first phase of cam shaft rotation; automatic means responsive to disengagement of the sewing machine drive clutch at the end of the sewing operation to initiate the second phase of cam shaft rotation; a second cam adapted to depress the sewing machine clamp ing jaws to garment engaging position during said first phase and move said jaws to elevated position and then to button receiving position during said second phase; a third cam for actuating the clamping jaw release means during the second phase while the jaws are in elevated position; a fourth cam for operating the loading means during the first phase; and a fifth cam for moving the transfer arm to button delivering position while the clamping jaws are in their button receiving position and moving the transfer arm back to button receiving position during said second phase of cam shaft rotation.

15. In a button feeding attachment for a button sewing machine of the type having a drive clutch, button clamping jaws movable vertically between a garment engaging position, a position elevated therefrom, and an intermediate button receiving position, and clamping jaw release means, a transfer arm movable between a button receiving position and a button delivering position between the sewing machine clamping jaws; loading means for depositing a button on the transfer arm in the button receiving position thereof, a rotatable cam shaft having a cycle of rotation consisting of two successive phases; a drive motor for rotating the cam shaft and a single revolution clutch for connecting the cam shaft and drive motor; a manual control for engaging the single revolution clutch to initiate the first phase of cam shaft rotation, means conditioned by cam shaft rotation for disengaging said clutch at the end of said first phase; a first cam on said cam shaft adapted to cause engagement of the sewing machine drive clutch and initiate a sewing operation during said first phase of cam shaft rotation; means operated by disengagement of the sewing machine drive clutch at the end of the sewing operation to reengage the single revolution clutch and initiate the second phase of cam shaft rotation; a second cam adapted to depress the sewing machine clamping jaws to garment engaging position during said first phase and move said jaws to elevated position and then to button receiving position during said second phase; a third cam for actuating the clamping jaw release means during the second phase while the jaws are in elevated position; a fourth cam for operating the loading means during the first phase; and a fifth cam for moving the transfer arm to button delivering position while the clamping jaws are in their button receiving position and moving the transfer arm back to button receiving position during said second phase of cam shaft rotation.

16. In a button feeding attachment for a button sewing machine of the type having a drive clutch, button clamping jaws movable vertically between a garment engaging position, a position elevated therefrom, and an intermediate button receiving position, and clamping jaw release means, a transfer arm movable between a button receiving position and a button delivering position between the sewing machine clamping jaws; loading means for depositing a button on the transfer arm in the button receiving position thereof, a rotatable cam shaft having a cycle of rotation consisting of two successive phases; a drive motor for rotating the cam shaft and a single revolution clutch connecting the cam shaft and drive motor; a lever for engaging the clutch to initiate the first phase of cam shaft rotation, and means conditioned by cam shaft rotation for disengaging said clutch at the end of said first phase; a first cam on said cam shaft adapted to cause engagementof the sewing machine drive clutch and initiate a sewing operation during said first phase of cam shaft rotation; automatic means responsive to disengagement of the sewing machine drive clutch at the end of the sewing operation to reengage the clutch and initiate the second .phase of camshaft rotation; a second cam adapted to lower the sewing machine clamping jaws to garment engaging position during said first phase and move said jaws to elevated position and then to button receiving position during said second phase; a third cam for actuating the clamping jaw release means during the second phase while the jaws are in elevated position; a fourth cam for operating the loading means during the first phase; a fifth cam for moving the transfer arm to button delivering position while the clamping jaws are in their :button receiving position and moving the transfer arm back to button receiving position-during said second References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Thomson et a1 Apr. 16, 1901 Chilton Nov. 5, 1901 10 14 McKay Nov. 26, 1901 Chilton May 31, 1904 Waldes Sept. 15, 1914 Carley June 26, 1917 Rawnsley Dec. 19, 1933 Vaughan Dec. 26, 1933 Stott July 9, 1940 Burkey June 15, 1943 Troll Dec. 8, 1953 

